


bickering old coots of the southern water tribe

by TheGodWith5Yen



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Canonical Character Death, Chief Katara of the Southern Water Tribe, Comfort Food, Cuddling & Snuggling, Family, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Growth, Love, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Platonic Cuddling, Post-Avatar: The Last Airbender, Pre-Avatar: Legend of Korra, Water Siblings Week 2020, its aang and its only mentioned
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:06:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,248
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26570377
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGodWith5Yen/pseuds/TheGodWith5Yen
Summary: “What has you seeking us out Chief Silla? Is there a problem?” Katara asked as she smiled up at her successor. Normally so poised and ready with their words, Silla looked unsure with themself as they opened their mouth and glanced around. Katara was about to invite them back towards her home if the matter at hand was more personal, but Silla leaned down and whispered four words that made her heart beat fast in her chest and a sudden adrenaline that she had not felt in years course through her veins.“They found the Avatar.”
Relationships: Katara & Kya II (Avatar), Katara & Sokka (Avatar)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 20





	bickering old coots of the southern water tribe

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I'm really excited about this piece, it's the first fic I started while writing for Water Siblings Week. I wasn't sure whether to post this for 'grief' or for free day, but I decided to wait for the free day. This is the first atla story I've ever written (not counting the lok fic I wrote and posted not too long ago), which is kind of wild considering I've loved this show since I was a kid and have seen it about a thousand times, but it was so exciting to write so I hope you all enjoy this <3
> 
> Also not sure how much bickering there is between Sokka and Katara, but that was the working title and I like it sooo it stays lol

Despite her getting on in age, her hands were as steady as ever as she twisted off the hair tie into the end of her long braid, giving herself one last look in the mirror. It had been a present from Tenzin, who had said he had commissioned the frame of the mirror a year in advance from the finest woods craftsman in the Earth kingdom, who happened to be a man who had once lived in the Northern Water Tribe and made a living off the craft of carving in Omashu of all places. The mirror’s frame was full of intricate carvings of waves, of the mustached little bodies of otter penguins that without fail made Katara think of her late husband who even in his older age had gone to play with them whenever he could, a polar bear dog with her pups as they stared at the otter penguins across from them, of a crescent moon that was deliberately paler than the rest of the frame, and of a growing village that Katara had helped make flourish in her years. 

Katara smiled at her reflection as she made sure one final time that her hair looked well. She wrapped her beaded shawl, with yellow and blue details that her husband had painstakingly made for her as a gift years ago, around her chest as she moved out the door and made her way towards the front room. There, Kya was humming to herself as she readied breakfast, her long hair that Katara couldn’t help but reminisce of braiding and fixing up when her daughter was a young girl, was already streaked in gray and fell loose over her shoulders. 

“I thought you would be sleeping still.” Katara said with a smile as her daughter laughed and poured her a bowl of the stew she had made. “Oh stewed sea prunes, my favorite, thank you Kya dear. If I didn’t know better I think you were warming me up for trouble.”

Kya, whose poker face hadn’t improved since she was six and Katara had caught her giving Bumi an abysmal haircut that she insisted had not been her as though she hadn’t had dark hair on her chest and lap and shears in her hands, smiled weakly and scoffed. “ _Mom_. Why ever would I do someth—good morning Uncle Sokka! Look Mom, it’s Uncle Sokka!” Kya grinned and gestured with both hands towards where Sokka was walking into the room, his cane in hand and a grin on his face to be greeted so well early in the morning. 

Sokka raised up his hand and bowed slightly at his waist, “Why hello my wonderful, kind, favorite niece! At least one person here appreciates me. Is this stewed sea prunes? You know it’s my favorite Kya, thank you.” Katara harrumphed, but didn’t say a word as she continued to eat her stew and watched as her daughter gave Sokka and herself a bowl before sitting at the table. “I received a letter from The Duke,” Sokka said as he brought his bowl up to his lips. 

“What does he have to say?” Katara asked. She hadn’t heard much from The Duke lately, but knew the man had settled down years ago in a village near the Great Divide because Sokka was one who enjoyed keeping track of everyone he ever knew.

“The usual. His son—Arata, the firebender remember?—had a daughter. Can you believe it? The Duke is just a kid!” Sokka complained as he wiped at his mouth with his hand. 

“Uh—The Duke is _not_ a kid, he’s a grown man in his sixties. Also, I’m pretty sure he’s not that younger than Toph, and she has grandchildren. Remember Suyin? She has a few kids now.” Kya reminded them as she pointed her spoon at Sokka. Katara hummed as she remembered Toph briefly mentioning that her youngest had children, but she had yet to meet any of them. She hadn’t even seen Suyin since she was a teenager and had run off to travel the world without a word. It had all sounded familiar enough, and Toph hadn’t been all too worried despite how much Lin had fretted. “I think her oldest is about ten now? Something like that.”

“Ten? Really? Wonder if he’s as much of a pain as his grandmother was around that age.” Katara chuckled to herself as she finished up her stewed sea prunes. Nearly immediately, Kya poured another large portion into her bowl and Katara eyed her daughter wearily as she chewed on a sea prune. “What are you up to?”

Sokka raised a hand and pushed lightly at her shoulder. “C’mon Katara, don’t be like that. Kya is just showing some respect for her mother and uncle! Anyways, Toph really was not as bad as your faulty old memory seems to think.”

“Fire Fountain City ring any bells in your stupid old head?” Katara shot back with a harrumph that made her older brother scoff and roll his eyes as he deliberately spoke while chewing on a sea prune. He may be an old man, but he behaved just like he always did. Katara just continued eating her food and refused to look at him, catching her daughter’s smile as she watched the two of them.

“Fire Fountain City does not count! Not when even you got caught up in the scam _and_ we nearly got killed.”

The point was _right_ of course, but Katara remembers how frustrated she had been at Toph and how she had wrapped the boys up into scamming their way into money until she had overheard the girl and her brother having a conversation about Katara’s _overly motherly_ behavior. So she just responded with, “Do not remind me of Sparky Sparky Boom Man.”

There was a moment of silence before her brother said, “Actually, it was agreed that his name was Combustion Man.”

Katara gave her brother a look as he raised his eyebrows at her and Kya laughed into her hand. “Well, I apologize for using the wrong nickname _you_ made up for a man who tried to kill us when we were kids. My mistake.” If Sokka mumbled out a sarcastic ‘thank you’ that made her blood momentarily boil, Katara strictly pretended she did not hear it and instead finished up her stew and placed her bowl back down onto the table before announcing that she would be off for a walk if anyone wanted to know. Katara was nearly ready to go when Sokka grabbed his wooden cane—a beautiful piece of work with a handle in the shape of a moose lion cub because her brother had apparently never gotten over how he had been stuck in a hole for half a day without anyone noticing or helping him—and said he was coming along. “Alright then,” Katara crossed her arms and made her way out of the house, Sokka at her heels. 

They were halfway through their village when Katara caught sight of Chief Silla, who had their long dark hair loose from the usual ponytail they kept their hair in and had their broad shoulders covered with a large coat that held their youngest child in the hood. Katara paused when Silla called out her name and trudged over. “Chief Katara, Master Sokka, I’m glad I caught you both! I was heading towards your home.”

“Chief Silla. Hello little Aput,” Sokka reached over to rub at the sleeping child’s forehead before greeting Silla by clasping their forearm. 

“What has you seeking us out Chief Silla? Is there a problem?” Katara asked as she smiled up at her successor. Normally so poised and ready with their words, Silla looked unsure with themself as they opened their mouth and glanced around. Katara was about to invite them back towards her home if the matter at hand was more personal, but Silla leaned down and whispered four words that made her heart beat fast in her chest and a sudden adrenaline that she had not felt in _years_ course through her veins. 

“They found the Avatar.” 

The representative from the village claiming to have new Avatar was a young woman with dark hair cut short and styled in the way that Katara had seen many men in the Earth Kingdom start styling their hair as when she had last visited Tenzin. She introduced herself as Nuliajuk and had excitedly explained that yes, they were sure that the child was the next Avatar. “Trust me Chief Katara, Master Sokka, once you meet her you’ll see. She’s _special_.” So, they left on the trek towards the village, which wasn’t too far, on the backs of large arctic camels. 

Katara had only ridden arctic camels a few times, they were an animal that her village had never domesticated and kept since they had been hit the hardest from the Fire Nation raids. Some of the other villages in the South had kept them, like Nuliajuk’s. Katara clung to the arctic camel’s neck and scowled at her brother who rode on his own like it was natural to him. “My husband is the Firelord with a dragon and my wife was a Kyoshi warrior. Of course I can ride one of these Katara,” Sokka had laughed out loud when he saw Katara struggling. She had responded by flicking her wrist and causing snow to fly into his face and into his open mouth. 

About half an hour in, Katara said, “Tell me about the child.”

Nuliajuk hummed and nodded her head. “Her name is Korra, daughter of Tonraq and Senna. She’s a spunky kid, real cute and energetic. Tonraq is from the Northern Water Tribe and is the older brother of Chief Unalaq. I don’t know much, but Tonraq arrived here about ten years ago and has become a large pillar of our community. He’s a good man and a good father from what I can see.”

Chief Silla whistled. “Wonder what kind of fight brewed to cause Chief Unalaq’s brother to leave the entirety of the Northern Water Tribe.” 

They processed that thought silently before Katara cleared her throat for the question she had to ask. Still, she could feel the words sticking to the roof of her mouth, but she pressed on anyways. “And you’re sure she was born on…” Katara swallowed and looked down at her arms and the rough white fur of the camel she was riding. Before she could continue, Sokka did for her, “She was born on the day Aang passed?” Katara gave her brother a grateful look. It had only been nearly five years since her husband's death and she still missed him dearly. Some days she would move to turn towards his side of the bed to see his face or make a joke thinking it would make him laugh, only to remember he was no longer there by her side. Aang’s death was the reason Kya had come back home.

Nuliajuk nodded her head as she met Katara’s eyes, her face serious and understanding. “Yes, she was. Her and a boy were both born on the day of Avatar Aang’s passing, so it’s been easy keeping track of the two within our small village. But, as I said, we are positive that Korra is the next Avatar. You’ll see.”

Katara nodded her head, though she felt unsure about Nuliajuk’s certainty. They had only agreed on the trip to the village with Silla since they had insisted that if anyone would know for certain, it would be the wife and brother-in-law of the past Avatar. They neared the village at noon and stopped their arctic camels at a small stable that was full of other arctic camel. Before Silla could move to help Katara, she raised up a block of ice and lowered herself down without any help, giving the Chief a pointed look as she did, which earned her a laugh as Silla shoved their hands in their coat pockets and offered their elbow, which Katara took with a smile. 

“Think this will be the real thing?” Sokka asked as they followed behind Nuliajuk, who had explained that the child and her family’s home wasn’t too far off. Katara glanced around and caught sight of the village’s people going about their business and occasionally waving towards their group. 

“No. For all we know the next Avatar is a living in the swamps or is one of the hundreds of immigrants in the Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation.” The thought of an Avatar being one of the swamp people made Katara smile and she could tell Sokka thought that it was hilarious as well. 

“Imagine the Avatar, bending swamp vines and wearing a leaf! Oh man, they’d be invincible!” Sokka chortled and nudged at her shoulder. “Oh man, miss those crazy guys, they were the best.”

Before Katara could answer, Nuliajuk gestured towards a home and announced, “This is it.” They shuffled forward and waited as Nuliajuk knocked on the door. It didn’t take long before a young woman, her brown hair in two braids and dark circles underneath her eyes, opened the door with a shaky grin. “Senna, great! I brought with me Chief Silla, Chief Katara, and Master Sokka. They are _very_ eager to meet young Korra.”

Senna opened the door wider and bowed her head slightly. Katara could see how wide her dark eyes became at seeing them, but the young woman picked up her head and smiled. “Hello. Come in. It’s an honor to have you in our home. I’m afraid Tonraq was just settling Korra down for a nap, but I’ll, um, I’ll go get him. And Korra. Please, sit!” Senna watched them all take a seat before rushing off. They waited quietly, glancing around the room. There were decorations of spirit masks and a photo of Senna and her husband grinning and holding up a chubby infant with a blank look on her face and a fist in her mouth. Next to her, Sokka was rubbing at the handle of his cane. The small horns of the moose lion cub had long ago worn down from his worrying it. Katara set her hand on his and squeezed it. 

“I should be comforting you.” Sokka mumbled as he raised his left hand to push a lock of Katara’s graying hair behind her ear. 

“Well, it makes me comfortable to comfort you so get used to it Sokka.” Katara shot back with a final pat to his hand as she heard footsteps moving their way. It was not Senna or her husband that first appeared. No, it was a small four year-old girl with her hair in two messy ponytails and a stained shirt that didn’t quite cover her belly. The little girl’s feet were quick and made excited movements as she grinned and greeted them all with a bow of her head and a quick shake of each of their hands before moving to sit on Silla’s lap with a grin. 

“Oh my!” Silla laughed out. “Why hello there little one. Are you the one we’ve heard so much about?”

“Hmmm… I don’t know!” Korra replied as she reached up to trace the deep smile lines on Silla’s face. “I’m Korra! Who are you?”

“I am Chief Silla, and here with me is Master Sokka and Chief Katara.” Silla pointed to them and Katara grinned at the little girl and saw from the corner of her eye as her older brother made a face at Korra to make her smile. Korra made a face back at Sokka before climbing out of Silla’s lap and standing in front of Katara. She traced lines into the fur lining of Katara’s coast as she spoke, “I’m Korra! Are you _really_ Chief Katara? My dad told me lots of stories about you. You’re awesome! Can I show you something? I can show the Chief, right daddy?” 

Tonraq, a tall handsome young man who was watching his daughter with a smile and an arm wrapped around his wife’s shoulders, nodded his head and immediately Korra jumped away and came back into the bowl with a bowl half her size filled with water. Her father helped her place it onto the floor and the young girl moved a few paces away from the bowl. Korra breathed in and closed her eyes before she began to move her arms. It was a simple waterbending move that was taught to beginners usually ten to twelve years old, but Korra was only a toddler so if anything she would only cause a ripple. Still, Katara watched with a smile, happy as always to watch a young one waterbend. She watched as the water shifted, back and forth in the mimic of a wave before rising up in a small tentacle that wavered before falling down and splashing as Korra dropped her arms. 

Katara clapped her hands. “By the spirits, you are a beautiful bender my dear Korra.” Even if the young girl wasn’t the Avatar, she was very obviously a talented bender if she already had the ability to bend water so well so young. Even Katara, who was considered a prodigy from her mastery of waterbending at the age of fourteen after minimal training, had never had the ability young Korra possessed. It had been _years_ since Katara had taken a student, but she was already thinking of how she could help teach Korra. The young girl could even become the next chief of the Southern Water Tribe. 

“She’s a prodigy,” Chief Silla voiced Katara’s thoughts, speaking quietly to Nuliajuk who grinned and nodded her head. Katara could see how Silla was thinking of what Katara had, that if Korra was not the Avatar she might have a future as a great, strong leader for their people. 

Korra grinned and bowed with her hands clasped in front of her before jumping up and down. “I can do more! Want to see?”

“Yes, yes, show us!” Katara grinned and waved her hands to encourage the girl to move forward back towards the bowl of water. Instead, Korra closed her eyes and breathed in, deep and long. Her stance changed, her legs further apart and squared in a position that was familiar because Katara had spent years watching her husband practicing his bending, and Korra thrust out her open palm and a lick of fire erupted and danced around before diminishing. Next to Katara Sokka choked and coughed into his hand and she sat there momentarily stunned. _You’ll see_ , Nuliajuk had told them. Korra really was a prodigy. “You’re the next Avatar.”

“Yup!” Korra laughed and jumped from foot to foot as she made a few more flames and raised up a ball of water that fell until her feet and made her giggle and wiggle her body as she ran back up to Katara and grabbed her hands. “I’m the Avatar and anyone who has anything to say has to deal with it!” Nuliajuk had also said she was a spunky kid. Katara grinned and pressed her hand onto the forehead of Avatar Korra, the young girl who her husband had reincarnated into, and could see the endless possibilities of who she could become. 

The spirits were already dancing above in the sky and along the shining moon when they arrived back to their home. The moment Katara and Sokka walked into the house, Kya jumped up and gathered Katara in her arms. “Oh thank Tui! I couldn’t find you anywhere! You scared me half to death Mom! Where were you two? I thought you two got murdered by a polar bear dog!” She pulled back and gave them both a serious look as her lips wobbled. 

“As if _we_ would let a polar bear dog be the one to finally take us out! Ha!” Sokka laughed as he patted Kya’s hair and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before moving off to find something to eat. “We’re fine, little Kya. Sit, sit. Let’s eat some more of these stewed sea prunes.” 

Kya sniffled and rubbed at her eyes before nodding and helping her uncle heat up the stew and collecting bowls to use. When they were finally all seated with a bowl of stew, Katara said, “A representative from one of the villages came claiming to Chief Silla that one of their children was the next Avatar. Silla asked us to come along since we are apparently Avatar professors now.” 

“I could teach a class about the Avatar if I wanted to. Avatar 101: The Bridge Between Two Worlds and High Stakes Pressure of Having One Year to Learn All the Elements.” Sokka said with a laugh and a flourish that made Kya chuckle and Katara elbow his side. 

“Isn’t that what your autobiography was about Uncle Sokka?” Kya snorted out with a large smile. “So do you think the child is the next Avatar? Or is this another one of those shams like people in Republic City were doing a few years back. Like a nine month old baby’s eyes are going to start glowing.” Katara had been glad she did not live in Republic city, hearing second hand from Tenzin’s letters the kind of claims people made had made her blood boil to the point that _she_ half believed that flames would erupt from her ears like apparently some twenty year old earthbender had claimed happened after eating a dish with too much fire flakes. Katara shared a look with Sokka, who just chewed on a sea prune and gestured for her to break the news. 

“Our next Avatar is named Korra of the Southern Water Tribe.” Katara watched how Kya’s dark eyebrows raised and the small distinctive mole that was on her forehead that Katara had always kissed when her daughter was younger disappeared among the wrinkles of her incredulous face. “She’s only four, of course, but the power she has is unlike any other bender. She may be the most powerful Avatar to ever live. I’ve never heard of any being able to bend other elements so young other than… other than Aang, no other Avatar had learned about their abilities until they were sixteen.” 

“Wait wait wait. She’s bending other elements? Wow. So what happens now? Do we announce that the next Avatar is found?” There were tears shining in Kya’s eyes and Katara reached out to grab her daughter’s hand and gave her a smile and she returned, tight and tired. “Are you going to train her? Wait, um, sorry, I need a,” Kya let go of Katara’s hand as she stood up and walked off towards her room. 

Katara shared a look with Sokka, who sighed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “It’ll be fine. She just needs to process—everything. You have to admit, it is pretty weird to deal with. Aang, one of my best friends, is now reincarnated into a four year old little girl who farted when she sat in my lap. How are you processing it?” Sokka glanced at her with wide worried eyes and Katara set her head on his shoulder.

“I miss Aang so much it aches. Seeing Korra… my first thought when I saw her bend that water was how she could be my student, maybe even be Chief one day. But, she’s destined for more than me or our tribe or even the legacy Aang left behind. I miss Aang, but Korra is the next step forward and I will do everything I can to help guide her along. Friendships can last lifetimes.” It was one of Aang’s phrases that he had said several times over the years while he would laughingly call himself Zuko’s great-grandfather, and later when he had become sick Aang insisted that no matter what his friendship with them would live on like his with Monk Gyatso had. At the time Katara hadn’t accepted that answer for much else then placating them all, but now it was reassuring that Aang had been right. Sokka laughed at her words, likely remembering how Aang had teased his husband with them for years, and they sat silently eating for a little longer before Katara stood to talk to Kya.

She found her daughter sitting with arms hugging her knees as she stared ahead at a piece of artwork Sokka had made for her years ago when she was a teenager. Katara found it ugly, but Kya had grinned and said something about how Katara just did not understand the beauty and complexity of art. Kya glanced at Katara as she stepped inside her room and sat onto her bed of furs. “Hey,” Katara said as she began to rub her daughter’s back, who just gave her a tight smile. Suddenly, all Katara could see was when Kya was a young girl sulking in her room away from Bumi because he said something that made her upset. “Tell me what’s going on in that head of yours.”

Kya chuckled at the familiar words before sighing and shaking her head. “I _know_ Dad’s been— _gone_ for years now. It’s why I moved back home, to be here for you, but a new Avatar? It makes his death so much more _real_. Which I know is stupid and I’m a grown adult so I shouldn’t be crying alone in my childhood bedroom about it, but—” A small sobbed escaped her lips and Katara pulled her daughter close to her chest and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “I miss Dad so much. I wish I spent more time with him. I wish I wasn’t such a dramatic teenager who refused to spend time with her parents and just went on those stupid trips with him and Tenzin to the air temples like he always asked. Why didn’t I spend more time with him?” 

“We can’t change the past Kya, no matter how much you yell at your past. You can only accept it. I miss Aang everyday, but I know he wouldn’t want me—or you—to feel sad or full of regret for so long.” Katara said as she held her daughter tight to her, Kya’s shoulders shaking with her tears. When Kya finally settled down, Katara asked, “Will you now tell me what’s been on your mind?”

Kya pulled away and opened her mouth before shaking her head. “I. I can’t anymore. I was—I wanted to go back to traveling the world, but I can’t now that the new Avatar is here and Uncle Sokka is leaving back to the Fire Nation in a few weeks.” 

“Do you take me for a senile old woman who can’t take care of herself? You know I am still one of the tribe’s greatest warriors despite passing on my title of Chief? I don’t need you to take care of me! If you want to go, nobody but yourself is holding you back.” Katara loved having her daughter home, but she could see how Kya would glance at the horizon and the dancing spirits above and knew that it was only a matter of time that Kya left again. She and Bumi were free spirits, much like Aang. Which was funny, seeing how Tenzin, little homebody Tenzin who used to wrap his arms around Katara’s legs and visited the Southern Water Tribe more than the air temples simply because he could, was the legacy of the Air Nomads. 

“Won’t you be lonely?” Kya asked with a frown, but Katara could see that she was already planning her next move. 

Katara scoffed and crossed her arms. “No! I have plenty of friends here in the tribe, plus I will be training Korra so it’s not like I will be lying about sulking about you leaving. Besides, Tenzin is visiting soon.”

“Tenzin is _always_ visiting soon. He’s a total momma’s boy.” Kya said with a roll of her eyes, but she was smiling anyways. It always made her happy whenever Tenzin visited over the last few years, since Bumi was mostly away and only communicated with them through long winded letters full of stories that Kya said couldn’t be true. However, Katara knew her oldest son, who somehow took after his namesake, Aang, and Sokka, could get into the oddest of situations without much effort on his part. “If he didn’t visit you so much, him and Pema would already have a kid or three by now.”

“Oh Kya,” Katara said with a chuckle as she covered her hand with her mouth. “I would definitely like a grandchild for myself though, since you and Bumi have decided to be _eternal bachelors_.” Her daughter snorted and laughed into Katara’s shoulder, and Katara gave her a kiss to the top of her head as she smoothed at her hair. 

“Tell me about Avatar Korra.” Kya said as she snuggled close, like she was the little girl who would hug Katara everyday before bed asking about stories of Princess Yue or the Cave of Two Lovers. Katara hummed as she found the words to describe Korra—the bright little prodigy bender who instantly made a smile break out on Katara’s face, the rumbacious energy that caused her to jump and spin and bend water and earth and fire with little to no effort. “In a way, it’s like Dad’s soul never left us,” Kya whispered, “he stayed here in the South Pole.”

“He did. He always will Kya.” Katara reached over and placed her hand on Kya’s left shoulder, where she knew her daughter had gotten a tattoo of intricate arrows in the shape of a flying lemur when she was about twenty years old. Kya had said that while she didn’t follow the Air Nomad way of life and was a waterbender who could never have arrow tattoos like Tenzin and Aang, her father's culture was as much a part of her as the pull of the waves. Aang had cried and tried to get a matching tattoo from Sokka before Katara convinced him to find someone who could actually draw a straight line (though, at that point, Sokka _had_ improved much in his art endeavors, but it was still a valid point for Katara to make).

Katara fell asleep with her arms around her daughter and her hair loose over her shoulders. They usually didn’t sleep together in the same bed unless it was the winter time and they would cuddle together near warm coals—and the occasional visitors like Tenzin and Pema, who always bundled up so tightly with her nose pink and running, and Sokka with Suki and Zuko, who was like a furnace that nearly everyone tried to cuddle close to his warmth, and sometimes even Izumi, Tapeesa, Akihiko, and Miki who would visit with or without their parents. It was nice to be so close to her daughter, because no matter how at peace she felt over meeting the new Avatar, Katara couldn’t help but want to be near someone else for the night. 

She didn’t want to wake up reaching for Aang only to remember he was no longer there, and in his place was instead a four year old child with a bright smile and eyes burning with a passion even though she was so young and knew so little of the world. So Katara held Kya close to her and they slept, warm and long.

**Author's Note:**

> ALRIGHT so!
> 
> Cheif Silla is a nonbender and is a nonbinary lesbian who uses they/them pronouns. They have a wonderful wife and two children, a three year old and little Aput who is only a few months old. Nuliajuk is definitely a butch lesbian. Sokka is married to both Zuko and Suki and they have four children: Izumi (the canon future firelord and nonbender), Tapeesa (earthbender), Akihiko (nonbender), and Miki (firebender). I may write something with them all because I love them lol. 
> 
> Here's a picrew I made of [Silla and Nuliajuk!](https://lesbianakinskywalker.tumblr.com/post/630017703151812608/id-two-picrews-in-the-style-of-avatar-the-last)
> 
> Leave a comment and a kudos, thank you for reading <3


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